Name of the student: Yuvraj Total pages Date:

Ecology SL

Total marks: 53

1. Euglena is a unicellular organism that feeds on bacteria and uses CO2 as a carbon
source. Which describes the nutrition of this organism?
A. Autotrophic only
B. Heterotrophic only
C. Saprotrophic only
D. Autotrophic and heterotrophic

2. The diagram shows a version of the carbon cycle. What is indicated by the numbers?
C
 3. Methanogens produce methane gas. What is this gas converted to in the atmosphere?
A. Carbon dioxide and oxygen
B. Ethanol and carbon dioxide
C. Carbon monoxide and ozone
D. Carbon dioxide and water

4. The image shows a transect through a stream and a field.

Which calculation would test for the association between two species of plants from
quadrat data from section A and section B of the field?
A. Correlation coefficient
B. Random numbers sampling
C. Standard deviation
D. Chi-squared
5. What favours the production of peat?
I. Presence of organic matter
II. Anaerobic conditions
III. Acidic conditions
A. I and II only
B. I and III only
C. II and III only
D. I, II and III

6. By which mechanism do greenhouse gases contribute to global warming?

A. Their higher concentration absorbs more long wave radiation coming from the Sun.
B. Short wave radiation emitted from the Earth’s surface increases with their concentration.
C. They absorb higher amounts of long wave radiation emitted from the Earth’s surface as
their concentration increases.
D. They absorb higher amounts of short wave radiation caused by increased combustion of
fossilized organic matter.
 7. In an area of forest measuring100 m by 100 m, samples were taken to estimate the
number of silver maple (Acer saccharinum) trees in the forest. The number of trees
counted in each of five areas of 400 m2 was recorded.

Approximately how many silver maple trees are in the 10 000m2 area of forest?

A. 5
B. 25
C. 125
D. 625
8. The diagram shows the carbon cycle.

Which two processes correspond to the labelled arrows?

A. K is combustion and L is catabolism.
B. J is anabolism and K is respiration.
C. J is combustion and K is respiration.
D. J is anabolism and L is catabolism.
 9. An experiment was set up so that each test tube contained water at a pH of 6.3 and a
pH indicator. Test tubes 1 and 2 also contained a common pond autotroph. Carbon
dioxide dissolves in water and forms carbonic acid. After three days the four test
tubes were found to have these results.

What conclusion can be drawn from test tube 1 and test tube 2?

10. Most of the surface of the Earth is covered with a wide diversity of ecosystems.
Outline two general characteristics of all ecosystems. [2]
 11. The image shows a food web.

(a) Using the food web, identify a

(i) detritivore. [1]

(ii) saprotroph. [1]

(b) State the name of the domain to which birds,such asthe Elf owl, belong. [1]

(c) Outline the energy flow through this food web. [3]
 12. Describe the process of peat formation. [4]

13. Mean annual chlorophyll concentration was measured in surface water of

Narragansett Bay along the Atlantic coast of the USA, from 1971 to 2006. Field data
of chlorophyll concentrations are shown below.

(a) Suggest a hypothesis for the trend in the graph. [2]

(b) Mesocosm experiments using water from Narragansett Bay were completed in the
laboratory during a six month period. Discuss advantages and limitations of carrying
out mesocosm investigations. [3]

(c) Explain the role of decomposers in an ecosystem. [2]

14. The diagram shows the greenhouse effect.

(a) State the type of wavelength of the radiation labelled X and Y. [2]
X: .....................................................................
Y: .....................................................................

(b) Outline reasons for the change occurring at Z. [2]

(c) The short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus) nests and breeds on remote
low-lying coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. Predict how global warming may threaten
the survival of such an ocean bird. [1]

15. Discuss the processes in the carbon cycle that affect concentrations of carbon dioxide
and methane in the atmosphere and the consequences for climate change. [8]
 16. Native oyster populations are decreasing where rivers meet the ocean along the
northwest coast of North America. These oyster populations are being attacked by a
gastropod.

It is known that oysters and gastropods have hard parts composed of calcium carbonate
and that ocean acidification is increasing. Studies were carried out using juvenile oysters
and gastropods to investigate the effects of acidification on the decrease in the population
of oysters.
The first step was to raise oysters in two different mesocosms. One had seawater at a normal
concentration of CO2 and the other had sea water with a high concentration of CO2.
Gastropods were raised in two further mesocosms with normal and high CO2 concentrations
respectively.
(a) Outline how acidified sea water could affect the shells of the oyster. [1]

A juvenile gastropod will attack a juvenile oyster by using its tongue-like structure (radula)
to drill a hole through the oyster shell. Once the hole has been drilled, the gastropod sucks
out the soft flesh. Researchers investigated the shell thickness at the site of the drill hole in
relation to the size of the oyster. The results are seen in this graph.
(b) Outline the trends shown in the data in the graph. [2]

Equal numbers of oysters raised in seawater with a normal CO2 concentration and in
seawater with a high CO2 concentration were then presented together to the gastropod
predators in seawater with a normal CO2 concentration. The same numbers of oysters from
the two groups were also presented together to the gastropods in seawater with a high CO2
concentration. The bar charts show how many of the oysters were drilled by the gastropods
and the mean size of drilled oysters.
(c) Estimate how much smaller drilled oysters raised in seawater at a high CO2 concentration
were than drilled oysters raised in seawater at a normal CO2 concentration. [1]
(d) (i) Deduce from the data in the bar charts which factors were and were not correlated
significantly with the number of oysters drilled by the gastropods. [2]

(ii) Suggest reasons for the differences in the numbers of oysters drilled, as shown in the bar
charts. [2]

(iii) The radula in a gastropod is hard but not made of calcium carbonate. Outline how this
statement is supported by the drilling success of the gastropods in seawater with normal or
high CO2 concentrations. [2]

(e) Using all the data, evaluate how CO2 concentrations affect the development of oysters
and their predation by gastropods. [2]